The world of poker is enormous, and that is because of the vast popularity of the game. But how did this game become so popular?
You might wonder, “Where does the game come from?”, “Where did the game start?” and “What makes the game popular?”. In this article, we want to shine the light on five surprising poker facts.
Poker Has A World Series
The World Series of Poker, also known as WSOP, is THE event in the poker community. The first WSOP was held in 1970 in Las Vegas with only a handful of participants.
Today the event features many professional poker players. You can watch live coverage of the WSOP events by visiting their GGPoker.eu partner. The live events are streamed on different platforms such as YouTube and Twitch; you don’t have to miss a single bit of action.
Poker Is More Than A 1,000 Years Old
There are two different opinions on how poker started. The first group of historians believed that poker started in the 10th century in China. In contrast, the second group of historians thought that it is based on the 16th-century Persian game Nas.
Both sides agree that from here, the game moved to France, where it gained popularity. Canada and the United States were next to jump on the bandwagon.
It is believed that the poker games before 1830 were played with 20 cards. Four players were all dealt five cards, and the betting process would start. After 1830 the game changed to include 52 cards.
Poker Originated From Dominos
The exact start of poker might not be as clear-cut, but we know that the game has been around for a long time. There are historians that believe that poker evolved from dominos.
It was reported that Emperor Mu-Tsung, 969 A.D, played a domino card game with his wife on New Year’s Eve. It is believed that this is a form of the first poker game, where it started as a friendly family game.
Poker Is Featured In Hundreds Of Movies
The film industry has made use of poker in hundreds of movies. In some movies, it is just friends casually playing a few hands of poker. But in other movies, we are looking at high-stakes poker games.
Some of the most famous movies featuring poker games include Maverick, The Gambler, and Casino Royale.
Some Poker Players Are Very Superstitious
We all have some superstitions, things that you have to do to try and ensure that your luck doesn’t run out. Well, in poker, it is the same; people try to get a winning edge. For example, Chinese poker players believe that they need to wear at least one piece of red clothing when playing poker to increase their chances of winning cash prizes and prevent them from losing.
Some people believe that you need to play poker in your dirty clothes; it will eliminate any bad luck. Perhaps you should stop washing your clothes for a bit.
Johnny Chan, a poker player that saw the humble beginning of the WSOP, used to carry an orange with him when we competed. He mentioned that he didn’t like the smoking, and he used to smell the orange when the smoke got too much for him. Perhaps this was only a way to curb the smoke smell, but it could quickly turn into a superstition where he couldn’t win without his orange.
In Conclusion
The origins of poker might not be clear, but we know that this game has grown in popularity and continues to do so. With various WSOP underway, it might be time for you to start getting your red clothes dirty.
